Polish Business Survey
Rodzina stuck
The Rodzina pension fund is reported to be considering a merger or a take-over of another fund. Rodzina was one of the last funds to kick-off after last yearŐs liberalisation of the market, with the result that all the best sales and marketing people had already been taken. Now it has 105,000 clients although only 13,700 are paying contributions. The main shareholder, Hamburg Mannheimer, wants to remain on the Polish market therefore some acquisition or merger may be the solution.
Rail bill attacks private firms
On 8 September the bill for the restructuring of the PKP will land on the President s desk. The bill is aimed at making the national rail network more market sensitive but the private rail carrier s association Railway Business Forum, is hoping that the president will veto the bill as they claim it is not only unconstitutional but also illegal under EU law. One of its effects would be to nullify all 21 existing concessions for private carriers which are enjoyed by such companies as DEC, Chem Trans Logistic, Pol-Miedź Trans and Zespół Elektrociepłowni Wrocław. These companies would have six months to reapply for their concessions, which could be refused.
Portals in danger
Over the past few months over ten new portals have appeared on the Polish market. Analysts think that only the two or three best can survive and now the market awaits fusions and acquisitions. Furthermore no-one can doubt that sooner or later international giants like Yahoo, America Online (AOL) or Lycos will enter Poland. As reported yesterday, Lycos is talking at present to Interia and AOL did negotiate, unsuccessfully, with Onet.
Up until now backers have come from a financial or IT background. Capital can also be raised on the stock market. However there is at present little to differentiate them and that is why they choose different names like vortal or internet stop.
It probably costs between PLN10m - PLN70m annually to run a portal and that money largely comes from advertising as e-commerce is in its very infancy. Presently the largest services have an advertising income of around PLN8m, clearly too little to maintain the site which is still only aimed at a niche market.
Problems brewing
Small brewers are hoping to lobby ministers to reduce the amount of excise duty they pay next year. These breweries, producing between 200,000 - 12m litres annually were grouped with the major concerns this year for taxation purposes. Previously they had enjoyed a rebate. In both Czech Republic and Germany small brewers pay less excise duty and their counterparts in Poland are threatened by bankruptcy because of this extra tax.
Marek Jakubiak of the Krotoszyn brewery said that the added duty will eliminate 70 percent of his profits if sales are as they were last year. In this case it will be impossible to talk of investments.
Small brewers make up some three to four percent of domestic production.
Excise duty on beer increased twice this year to a total of six percent. Last year it increased by 11.1 percent.
Pol-Mot tries tractors
Warsaw based Pol-Mot Holding has taken a majority shareholding in Szczecin based car parts manufacturer Polmo together with tractor assembly plant in Mrągowo it acquired last month.
PKP Cargo looks for wagons
PKP Cargo has announced a second tender to lease 1000 Falns series wagons. Bids for this contract, worth around PLN300m should be received by the end of September. An earlier tender was cancelled by the rail carrier.
Backers for cosmetics company
Kalisz based Gabriel is developing its network of franchised cosmetics shops. Next month it is to open a store in Toruń bringing its total to 67, with a further 15 in the pipeline before the end of the year. Marek Ulewicz, MD of Gabriel, claims he aims at having eventually 300 stores. Nonetheless he admits that funding is a problem with around PLN20m being invested coming from a closed share offer. Ulewicz claims that three foreign potential investors have come forward so far.
The entry of a new investor would not mean that the company s largest shareholder and founder, Gabriel Rokicki would lose control. He currently has 60 percent of the stock with the Central Poland Fund holding a further thirty percent. His shares are privelidged by a ratio of 5:1.
Gabriel is the exclusive distributor of a number of cosmetics such as Matis, Revlon, Diesel and Columbus. The company also supplies around 3,000 stores. The capital value of the company is PLN15.5m.